The Moon Singer
by Trunks1
Summary: A slightly twisted parody of "The Moon Singer". Features slight 1+2, as well as some good o'le Zechs and Treize hinting ^_^ Watch out for low flying sarcasm.


Author's note: The following is a parody of the wonderful story, The Moon Singer. I  
seriously  
doubt many will know of this story, but, to all that do, you guys rule ^_-  
  
  
  
The Moon Singer  
  
Parody by Trunks  
  
Original story by Clyde Robert Bulla  
  
  
A long time ago, in a far away country, there lived miller and his wife. They were not   
very well liked in the kingdom (with the credits going to their haughty behavior), but,   
regardless of this, they made their bread and acted no less snobby than someone of   
royal blood.  
  
One day, a woman came to the mill. She lead a small child by the hand, whom couldn't  
have been  
any older than five or six, but whom was taking an extreme disinterest in the surroundings.  
  
"Take this boy," she said, to the miller and his wife. "I can no longer care for him."  
  
"Another mouth to feed? Oh no," said the miller.  
  
"Then," said the woman, "at least give us a place to rest tonight."  
  
The miller agreed and gave them a bed of straw in the milk shed. It wasn't luxury   
accommodations, but it was a bed nonetheless.  
However, in the morning, the woman was gone and the child was left behind. Now, you  
would  
think that the miller could have seen this coming, but, the miller was getting senile in his  
old age and hadn't, exactly, been thinking correctly lately.  
  
"This is not so bad," said the miller's wife. "He may be a help to us later on."  
  
"That's true," said the miller.   
  
So, they kept the boy and called him Duo, which was a short name and easy to remember.  
Because,  
as I said before, the miller wasn't exactly a real bright fellow, and his wife wasn't Einstein  
either.  
  
Duo grew tall and strong, and he worked at the mill. It wasn't the best job, but it came  
with  
a bed and a meager amount of food, so the mill it was.  
  
But he was a strange boy.  
  
Sometimes, he would forget his work and wander off into the woods. There he would  
stand, his  
gaze directed towards the sky, as if he heard something no one else could hear.  
As if a beautiful melody reached on his ears, giving his life a new hope.  
  
Sometimes, at night, he left his bed and stood for hours under the sky.  
  
On a summer night, the miller and his wife woke to the sound of singing. The voice was  
clear  
and high and the song was one they had never heard before.  
And, while it might have been beautiful to anyone else, the miller and his wife were,  
certainly,  
not the kind of people whom enjoyed being awakened in the small hours of the morning by  
someone  
singing.  
  
"It's Duo!" said the miller's wife.  
  
As if it wasn't painfully obvious already.  
  
Duo was standing in the moonlight, singing his little heart out, his face turned towards the  
sky.  
  
The miller ran outside and grabbed Duo by the arm, dragging him back inside the house,  
"Stop  
your noise! You'll wake the whole village!"  
  
After that, Duo sang no more, where the miller and his wife might hear. Late at night,  
after the  
miller was asleep, he would sneak deep into the woods, and there he sang.  
  
A hunter heard him, one night, and drew near to listen. Afterwards, he talked in the village  
of   
the boy who sand.  
"His music sends chills down my spine," he said, "but I would go a long way to hear it."  
  
Other went to the woods to listen. They, obviously, had not heard of privacy.  
  
"The boy is mad," said some of them. "He may bring harm to us."  
  
And, as been before mentioned, not everyone was as sharp as others.  
  
"He has a great gift," said Quatre, the old music-master who lived in the village. "He  
cannot  
sing at home, so he sings in the woods, and where is the harm in that?"  
  
One evening, a stranger came to the village. A wheel of his carriage had broken and, while  
it  
was being mended, he stopped at the inn to rest.  
  
Villagers gathered to see him, having nothing better to do in their spare time than to gawk  
at  
complete strangers. He was so richly dressed that they were sure he must be a fine   
gentlemen. I would have just said he was a rich snob, but, hey, what do I know?  
  
One of them asked, "Sir, are you a lord?"  
  
The man laughed. "As a matter of fact, I am," he said. "I am Lord Zechs, from the court of  
the  
king."  
  
"Ah!" said the people, all together.  
  
A woman asked, "Is the king handsome?"  
  
"Well, umm, I guess so.." Lord Zechs replied, scratching his head slightly. He had never  
really  
considered the king handsome, considering how young he was. But, what did he know, he  
was just  
a Lord.  
  
"And is the palace really so splendid?" asked the woman.  
  
Once again, Zechs mentally wondered why they were asking him all of these questions. He  
ran   
around and did errands for the king, it wasn't as if he stayed at the castle all the time.  
Oh well, better to tell them something to help the kingdom.  
  
"The most splendid of all palaces," said Zechs, whom had to smirk. These people were  
just dumb  
enough to believe him.  
Maybe, when he got back, he would advise the king to burn this petty little village to the  
ground. Yes, that would be fun. Watch as all the villagers stood around, gawking at the  
fire and  
wondering what to do.  
  
"I once heard," said the woman, "of a baker, who made such good pies that he was taken  
to the  
palace to bake for the queen."  
  
Zechs blinked. Where did these people get this stuff? The only baker in the castle was  
Wufei,   
whom had a hard enough time not burning the food he made. Of course, no one told the  
mentally  
unstable baker that his food was terrible, that wasn't a wise decision. After all, he had  
a knife and he wasn't afraid to use it.  
"Um, uh, that is true..I guess.."  
  
Quatre had also come to the inn, with the others. "My lord, does the king have need of a  
singer?"  
  
Stopping to ponder on this, Zechs had to really be careful of what he said. What was he  
going to  
do if he said yes and then Heero absolutely hated the idea? Well, Zechs would be short a  
head,  
that he was sure of.  
"There are singers at the court," he said, finally, "but the king has grown weary of them."  
  
Then, almost hesitantly, he asked. "There wouldn't happen to be a singer in your village,  
would  
there?"  
  
"Yes, there is, my lord," said Quatre. "He is a young boy, whom sings in the woods at  
night."  
  
"That boy is mad!" said some of the others.  
  
"I find no madness in him," said Quatre. "His voice touches the heart, and the songs he  
sing   
are like no other songs."  
  
"When may I hear him?" Zechs asked, or more like sighed. If they were going to be  
persistent  
about this, he might as well humor them and go hear the kid.  
  
"He sings in the woods when the moon is shining," said Quatre. "The moon will be shining   
tonight."  
  
Now, Zechs was pretty sure the moon shone every night, but he wasn't about to  
second-guess the  
music-master. He had a certain innocent look to him, although he also had that  
'I-will-kill-you-  
if-you-doubt-me- look.  
  
That night, they went to the woods.   
  
"Just ahead is a bridge over a stream," said Quatre. "The boy often goes there to sing.  
Listen!"  
  
Deep in the woods, the boy was singing. There were no words to the song. The tune rose  
and  
fell and rose again, like the song of a bird.  
  
Lord Zechs, whom was too caught up thinking about his previous night with Treize, that  
he didn't  
notice. Thusly, because of this, he tripped over a twig and fell flat on his face.  
  
Grumbling a few curses, he stood up and brushed himself off.  
  
"He heard us and ran away," said Quatre. "He is very shy."  
  
"I must find him," Zechs said, although his mind was, oddly, still focused on Treize. It was  
amazing the different things rose smelling lotion was good for.  
  
"Nothing easier," said Quatre, "He works at the mill...Ecchi.."  
  
The next day, Lord Zechs went to the mill to find the boy whom had been singing. In  
truth, Zechs  
didn't know if the boy sang good or not, considering he hadn't been listening.  
  
Seeing a young girl, carrying several bags of flour, Zechs called out to her, "Excuse me,  
young  
maiden, I'm looking for a boy."  
  
Spinning around, the maiden, whom was, now, so obviously not a maiden, growled,  
"What did you   
call me? You old geiser."  
  
Zechs shied back, slightly, "Oops, sorry, I, um, heard you singing..Well, actually, no I   
didn't. Okay, so I heard people talking about you singing and I went to see you."  
  
Duo looked away, returning to his work.  
  
"Come, don't be afraid," said Zechs, "Who taught you to si-"  
  
"Afraid?! Look, mister, I don't know who you are, but I am not a girl and I am not scared  
of  
you. If your looking for some dumb, perky bride, forget it." Duo said, glaring at Zechs.  
  
Zechs sighed, "I'm here on..uh..behalf of the king. He wants you to come to his castle and  
sing."  
  
"Great, just what I need, more old people telling me what to do."  
  
"Did I mention the king has a fascination with beheading people?"  
  
Duo swallowed, "When do..we leave?"  
  
It took several days to reach the kingdom and, as Zechs soon learned, Duo had an  
inhuman talent  
for getting bored. So, upon Duo's request, the ride to the kingdom was spent playing  
every   
game Duo could think of.  
  
Upon their arrival at the castle, Duo was shown to his room and told to get some rest, as  
he  
would appear before the king the next day.  
But, Duo couldn't sleep. He wanted desperately to get out of the castle and sing, but, he  
could  
not leave.  
  
The next day, servants came in and dressed him up nicely, although he really missed his   
trademark black outfit.   
  
Lord Zechs came in. "Now," he said, "you are ready to meet the king."  
  
Duo followed him up the stairs and into the music room. Lords and ladies were there. The  
king  
sat among them, in a chair higher than those of the others.  
He was young and had a certain 'trigger-happy' look to him, although pistols and other  
handguns  
had yet to be invented.  
  
Strangely enough, the king wore very simple clothes. In fact, just spandex (which,  
everyone  
thought, had also not been invented yet) and a green tank top (don't ask me where he got  
it).  
  
Duo knelt before him, as he had been told to do. But, Duo didn't have to be told how to   
act, he wasn't dumb, like the villagers.   
  
"Lord Zechs says he found you singing to the moon," Heero said. "Will you sing to me  
now?"  
  
Duo stood and opened his mouth, although not a single sound came out. He wanted to  
sing for  
the king so badly, yet he couldn't. Being in the stuffy castle, cramped up in the rich   
clothes.. When he had sang in the forest, it had only been him and the moon, not all the  
people  
that were staring at him now.  
  
"Sing!" Zechs said in a fierce whisper, already picturing the guillotine blade coming down  
on   
his precious neck. Treize would certainly NOT be happy about that.  
  
Duo tried again, although no song came from him. He gave a sad look to the king, actually   
finding himself feeling sad that he could not sing for Heero.  
After all, Duo had just met the king and, already, he liked him.   
  
"Your highness, the boy is not quite ready," Zechs said, bowing, "After he is rested, I   
promise you he will sing even better than ever. Let me bring him before you tomorrow."  
  
Duo gave him a look, one that said 'Oh, I will, will I?'  
  
Zechs sighed, dragging Duo out of the room.   
  
The next day, they went back to the music room. The king was there, alone.  
  
"I thought it might be easier," she said, "if the boy sang only for me."  
  
"Your highness is most kind," said Lord Zechs. He said to Duo, "Sing."  
  
Duo, whom felt like giving Zechs a swift kick, frowned, "I can't!"  
  
"You must!" said Zechs. The blade was looking very, very close now.  
  
"But I can't!"  
  
Zechs caught Duo's arm and led him away. He gave Duo back his old clothes and told him  
to leave  
the palace, which, really, was what Duo wanted.  
  
Duo left the palace and traveled for days, trying to get back to the village. Eventually, he  
collapsed in a field and was found by a shepherd, whom, once Duo was well, offered Duo  
a  
home and job as a shepherd.  
  
Not having anything better to do than waste his life away tending to sheep, Duo agreed.  
  
One night, he could not sleep. He went out into the woods, staring up at the bright moon.  
A breeze blew, and he could smell the leaves and grass and the sea beyond.  
He began to sing. His voice was clear. It was stronger and deeper than before. He wanted  
to go leaping from hill to hill.   
  
He wanted to shout, "I can sing! I can sing!"  
  
For half the night he sang. The shepherds came to their doors and listened in wonder.  
  
Night after night, Duo sang.  
  
One day, news reached the palace, of King Heero and Lord Zechs, that there was a young  
boy whom  
sang very beautifully and like nothing else.  
The news was brought by a traveler, whom spoke directly to Zechs.  
  
"He sings at night?" asked Lord Zechs.  
  
"Yes," said the traveler. "They call him the moon singer, because they say he sings to the  
moon."  
  
"Does he have another name?" asked Zechs.  
  
"Yes," said the traveler. "It is Duo."  
  
Lord Zechs went to the queen. "Do you remember the boy who came here to sing, your  
highness?"  
  
"I remember him well," said Heero.  
  
"He was only pretending," said Zechs. "All the time he could sing. He is singing now in  
another  
part of the country."  
  
"Why should he pretend he could not sing?" asked the king.  
  
"I mean to find out," said Zechs. "I mean to bring him here again. If he dares to pretend,  
he   
will be punished in a way he won't forget."  
  
Heero glared, "He did not seem to be pretending."  
  
"Your highness, he must have been."  
  
"I can't believe it," said Heero, "and as much as I wish to hear him, it doesn't seem right to   
bring him here again."  
  
"Then how can you hope to hear him?" asked Lord Zechs.  
  
"I could go to him, instead," he replied.  
"Your highness!" cried Zechs, "You could not do that!"  
  
Heero grinned, wickedly, motioning out the window, towards his guillotine.   
  
Zechs swallowed, "I..Uh..Mean, Go right ahead."  
  
The next day, they started out on their journey. They traveled until they came to the hill   
country. Then they hid the royal coach in an old barn. They dressed in the plain clothes  
of country people.  
  
They found the house where Duo lived.   
  
Heero said to the shepherd, "We have heard of the boy who sings. When may we hear  
him?"  
  
"In a little while, when the moon rises," said the shepherd. "Take the path to the clearing  
in  
the woods. Many go there to listen, but they keep themselves hidden, because the boy is  
shy."  
  
The king and Zechs went down the path and into the woods. When they came to the  
clearing, they  
waited in the shadows. Others were waiting, too. Shepherds were there with their wives  
and  
children.  
  
The moon rose. By it's light they saw the boy in the clearing. He began to sing.  
  
"Oh-beautiful," Whispered Heero, which, of course, was a very unHeero-like thing to do.  
  
"You see," Zechs whispered back. "All the time he could sing. He shall be brought to the  
palace  
and-"  
  
"Zechs, shut up."  
  
"Yes, your highness."  
  
Duo's song floated up through the woods.   
It was a song of the night - of the moon and the stars and mist over the sea.  
  
"Beautiful," Heero whispered again, his eyes settling on Duo, who seemed so at peace as  
he sang.  
  
And he listened, that night and many another night. And Duo sang his songs, never  
knowing  
he was near.  
  
  
~ The end ~  
  
  
  



End file.
